Display device



Oct. 21, 1941. J. R. CONNOR DISPLAY DEVICE Filed March 5. 1940 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR James R (a/mar ATTORNEYS Oct. 21, 1941.

J. R. CONNOR DISPLAY DEVICE Filed March 5, 1940 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 M 56 5/ 30b in Q Q w 40 A 22 z/ v 251 47 23 3/ Z11 26 I 25 I 53 i2 57 INVENTOR 49 a; 9/ J4me: fiCm/mr ATTORNEYS Oct. 21, 1941. J, R, CONNO 2,259,436

DISPLAY DEVIQE Filed March 5,? 1940 4 SheetsSheet s INVENTOR James/1. Connor BYM ATTORN EYS Oct. 21, 1941. J. R. CONNOR 5 2,259,436

DISPLAY DEVICE Filed March 5, 1940 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR James R Co/mor BY WM ATTORNEYS Patented Oct. 21, 1941 UNITED STATES, PATENT OFFICE DISPLAY. DEVICE James R. Connonlvew York, Application March 5, 1940, Serial No. 322,389 I 14 Claims. 01. 35-43) This invention relates to display devices useful for indicating the appearance of c a room as furnished with difierent arrangements of furnishings such as movable articles of furnitur e, window curtains, lamps, etc., and different fixed articles of adornment such as Wall paper, painted wall coverings, and interior trim such as base boards and window casings.

It is an object of the invention to providethe representation of a room having one or more of the articles above mentioned inthe form of two or more panels formed of thin sheet material and upon which may be positioned patterns or models of the articles of furniture or other room furnishings, thus permitting the user to obtain a correct impression of the appearance of one or more Walls and the floor of the room as thus furnished.

It is a further object of the invention to provide such a room representation in which the panels representing the floor and walls of a room are formed from a single sheet of thin flat material which is scored to provide crease lines about which the individual panels may be folded to overlie each other, thus rendering the display device very compact.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a mask having a plurality of openings therein which aregenerally shaped to represent the plan View of certain articles of furniture and which overlie pieces or samples of various covering materials which are used as finishing materials to cover such articles of furniture on the above described panels.- Several such masks of Another object of the invention is to provide means in the form of one or more transparentmasks which are made to scale and which are marked to indicate the intensity of illumination at one footintervals from a standard electric lamp and by means of which the proper degree of illumination at various locations within the room may be determined for different uses, and also the number and spacing of the lampsv required to secure the desired illumination may be easily determined. This application is a continuation in part of application Serial No. 234,392, filed on October 11, 1938, in myname. V

, panying drawings in which:

Other and further objects of the invention will become apparent as the description thereof proceeds. For a better understandingfof the invention, however, reference ismade to the accom- Fig. 1 is a plan view of a display device embodying the invention with portions of the panels broken on;

Fig. 2 is a plan view on a reduced scale of the main supporting member of the display device of Fig. 1;

Figs. 3 and 4 are plan views of patterns or models adapted for use with the dipslay device;

Fig. 5 is a plan View of the mask portion of the display device shown in Fig. 15

Fig. 6 is a plan view showing a portion of the display device of Fig. 1 with an illumination indicating mask embodying the invention superposed thereon; and e e Figs. '7 and 8 are modified forms of illumination indicating masks embodying the invention and adapged for use with the display device shown in Fig.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, the main body or supporting member of the display device comprises a sheet S of thin, flat material such as heavy paper or cardboard, and which is scored to provide crease or fold lines 10, ll, 12 and 13, the rectangular panel l4 within these lines representing in general outline the floor of a room and the four surrounding rectangular panels l5, l5, I! and I8 representing the four walls of the room, most of .wall panel l1 being shown in Fig. 1, but the remaining panels I5, l6 and I3 being'shown broken oil near the floor panel I6. Adapted to cover substantially the entire panel I4, I provide a rectangular mask l9 which may be formed of cardboard or similar thin, light sheet material which may be colored as desired to represent textile material such as rug or carpet material, or may be a textural material such as the actual carpet, rug, linoleum or other fioor covering whose appearance in association with the other room furnishings it is desired to observe. The mask l9 (see Fig. 5) is provided with a pluralityof openings 20, 2|, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 21, 28, 29 and 30 which may be arranged as shown or in any other desired manner. A border line 3| may also be inscribed on the mask l 9, if desired, preferably spaced from, and parallel with its outer edges, as shown, the border line SI being broken asshown in- Fig. 1 to provide an offset portion 32 representing a door of the room. The opening 20 has the general shape of the top outline of a couch, the other openings, 2| to '30 in the mask, representing chairs. Between the mask l9 and panel I4 I provide pieces of textile or other covering material, the piece 33 extending beneath the openings 21, 28, 29 and 30, piece 34 extending beneath opening 20, pieces 35 and 35a beneath openings 2! and 22 respectively, piece 36 beneath opening 23, piece 3'! beneath openings 24 and 25 and piece 38 beneath opening 26. The pieces or samples of covering material 33, 34, 35, 36, 3'! and 38 preferably extend considerably beyond the openings they underlie and may overlap each other, if desired, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1. This arrangement permits each material sample to be of generous size rather f'e'rring to Fig. 1 such a panel 39 is shown as re'p-.

resenting a desk, panel 50 as representing a table, panel 4| as representing a bookcase, and panel 42 as" representing a bridge table. Such panels may be shaped as desired and made of different sizes and colors as indicatedin Fig. l, and positioned as desired on the mask in order to observe theeff'ect of difierent 'furniture arrange ments and differentcombinations of color inthe room, If desired, small cut-outs crpanels of cardboard or other material may bepositioned in desired locations to represent electric lights, such a cut-out being shown at 43 as representing a side or wall lamp and the disc M as represent= in g a table lamp (Fig. 1).

To observe t e decorative effects or d ssent treatments of the side wall or walls of the resin the panel 11 is shown as being partially covered with a generally rectangular sheet 45 of teict-ile material which may be colored orliavea suitable design woven or printed therein suitable fer dew curtain or draping material. over the sheet 45 is positioned amask '43 shown more clearly in g. 4 s beingprovidd witha pair or spec-ea apart window openings M, 58 which may be generally rectangular, as shown, or of other sesired hape; Mask 46 may be mass of earaba d suitably covered with a solid coa rigs: any desired solid color to represent a painted wall, or may be made of commercial wall paper either plain or figured with an appropriate peas design. Gr it may be made of any other 12' wall covering material; for example} teiitile Y mare-r Wood. By mea s of the ar as"genera described, the appearance of the side or the was with different selections er draping niaterial and'wall covering mater'ial may be easily observed and compared by providing a plurality of sheets 45 and masks 435 made 6f diifere'rit materials and di'iferentcolois. l

in further pursuance or the invention, the appearance of the side of the mom as affected by window casingand b'ase'board's made of different woods suchv as chestnut, maple, walnut, 'etc., may be observed by providing one or a plurality of patterns laFig- 3. .Tl'ies'e patterns'may be made of cardboard, pap s; other suitable material whose surface is. treated with anykn'own cover- 111g. material such as' paint, stain, lacduer, etc. to represent the color and ram of different weeds.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 3, each pattern 49 comprises a base portion 59 which represents the base board, and two upstanding rectangular portions 5 I and 52 providedwith the respective window openings 53 and 54 which are spaced similarly to the window openings 41, 48 in mask 45. This arrangement provides narrow borders 55 and 56 which extend about the window openings 41, 48 and simulate window casings. If desired, the borders 55 and 55 may extend slightly within or past the edges 57, 58 of the window openings 41 and 48 so as to conceal these edges, as shown in Fig. 1. While the decorative features just described are shown in Fig. 1 only in connection panel I'I, it is to be understood that similar components of the same or different color arrangements may be provided for use with any one or all of the panels l5, l6 and E8 to represent one or more of the other walls of the room.

b By forming theseveral component parts of the display device of thin, light material such as cardboard or paper and textile material, they may all be laid flat on top of main panel l4 and panels l5, I5, I! and It then folded over so asto cover and contain them. A display 'de vice of the type described is readily portable and is adapted to the display of the wares of interior decorators, wall covering manufacturers, paint manufacturers, furniture manufacturers, window curtain manufacturers; floor covering manufacturers, architects and all others who supply, design or manufacture room furnishings or fixtures such as lamps etc.

Referring to Fig. 6', as a further feature of the invention, I provide a rectangular shaped panel 59 formed of any suitable transparent material as, for example. thin plastic sheet material, whose surface is inscribed or etched with aplurality of spaced circles C having a common cenmr ter point 0. The panel also has inscribed on it; aset of seinicircmar arcs C arranged about a center 5" which lies substantially on the lower e ge 60 of the panel. The circles c and semicircles C are spaced apart a distance represent 45' ing 1 foot on the scale to which the display device is made. Each circle or semi-circle is marked} the manner indicated in Fig.3, with numbers indicating the intensity of illumination in foot-candlesll. C.) and also with the indi'cia Fine Work-Z Reading, etc., to indicate the character suitable to be performed in the several zones These graduations and indicia are based on the use of a standard 100 watt tungsten q filament bulb as the light source, it being understood that if a larger or smaller light source is used, the numbersand indicia indicating the degree o'f luminosity in the different Zones will be made to correspond.

Fig. 6 also shows a plurality of cardboard discs SI, 62; 63', 5 65 and 66 representing floor lamps and the cardboard panels 61 and 68 representing wall lamps. In using the panel 59 in connection with a lamp disposed on or close to the side wall of the represented room, the edge 68 thereof disposed parallel to the edge of the mask l9 and with the center mark '0 disposed above the center of the disc or panel representing the light source, the panel shown being arranged to indi cate the illuminationabout the lamp indicated at 65 in 6. With the illumination indicating panel in position, the intensity of the illumination at each point of the mask [3 disposed within the circles C orsemi-circles C may easily be read off. For a lamp which is disposed ate substan tial distance from the represented wall of the room as, for example, the lamp represented at 65, the center point 0 of panel 59 is disposed above the, center of thedisc 65 and-the-intensity of. illumination in the several zones about the lamp' may then be readily readofi the graduations of the circles C. When the displaydevice is arranged, with thejpanels' I5: to |-8-lying fiat, the circles C may be used to determine the illumination about a lamp'disposed anywhere on the mask l9, the-edge portion ofthe panel 5'" projecting over and overlying one or more of the flat panels, l5. to I81 In case the panels i5 to IB-arevertically disposedto represent the wallsof the room, however, the semi-circular graduations- C must. be used in connection with the determinationofthe illumination about a lamp disposed on or closely adjacent to a side wallof the represented room. This panelmaybe out in two on the horizontal line indicated at 59aso asto provide two separate units, the upper one having the circular graduations and lower one the semi-circular graduations;

A panel of the latter type is shownin Fig. 7 in which the panel 59 is similar to; the lower portion of the panel 59 of Fig. 6 and. includes the graduated semi-circles C and their appropriate indicia, as shown, the circular zones. being omitted. The use of this form of panel will be apparent from the above descriptionof the use of the lowerportion of panel 59.

In any case where the lamp is disposed closely adjacent to a corner of the room as, forexample, the lamp represented by the disc 53.- of Fig. 6, I' provide a panel of the form shown in Fig. 8. In this form of the'invention the panel 59" is square and the center point 0' of the circular arcs C is disposed substantially at one corner of the panel. It is thus possible to position the center [1" of the graduated arcs above the disc 63 when the side panels I5 and it are in vertically disposed position to represent the side walls of the room. The intensity of illumination at all points of the mask I9 disposed under the several zones defined by the substantially 90 degree circular arcs C", may then be readily determined from the graduations.

By means of the invention it is readily possible to determine the proper position a lamp should have in order to give a desired degree of illumination at any portion of the floor area of a room. It is also readily possible to deter mine the number of lamps required in a room in order to provide a sufficient degree of illumination at the difierent portions thereof.

I have described what I believe to be the best embodiments of my invention. I do not Wish, however, to be confined to the embodiments shown, but What I desire to cover by Letters Patent is set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A display device for guidance in the selec tion of materials for decorating a room and furniture comprising components formed of sheet material constituting a folder having at least two panels, one panel being a floor-representing panel and the other being a wall-representing panel, one or more samples of furniture-covering material disposed at spaced-apart positions on the floor panel, a mask simulating floor covering material or actually of floor covering material disposed over said samples and thereby concealing portions of said samples, said mask having furniture-shaped openings displaying furnitureshaped portions of said samples therethrough,

and asample P8112161.-

2. A device-ofthe class described comprising theelements combinediand' cooperating as set forth in claim 1 and further characterized by having said samples-and mask unattachedto'and removablefromthekpanels;

3. A display device for guidancei'n the selection of'decoratingmaterials for a room and furniture-comprisingcomponents formed of' sheet material and having at least two panels, one panel being a floor-representing panel and the other a wall representing panel, one or more samples of furniture-covering material disposed at spaced apart positions onthe floor panel, a masksimul'ating floor covering material or actually of floor covering-material disposed over said samples and having furniture-shaped openings displaying'said'sarnples throughout the-extent of such openings; said mask cancealing the remainder of such samples-, a sample or window or door draping material disposed on the-wall panel, and a piece of Wall covering material disposed over the last named; sample and having at least one window or door-simulating opening therein to display portions of said draping material therethrough.

4. A display device of the class describedco .i-

prising a substantially fiat component having an outline representing afloor plan,- one ormore samplesof material; adapted for the covering of plurality of openings therein-disposed over the samples respectively, each opening representing in shape the outline of an article of furniture and a plurality of substantially flat components disposed on said mask between the openings therein, each of said last-named components representing in shape an article of furniture.

5. A display device comprising a component formed of thin sheet material creased to provide four fold lines arranged to divide the component into a floor-representing panel and four wallrepresenting panels, one or more samples of furniture-covering material disposed at spaced apart positions on the floor representing panel, means disposed over said samples arranged to conceal a portion only of each sample and simulating floor covering material, said means having furniture-shaped openings displaying said samples throughout the extent of said openings, and means simulating wall and window decorating materials disposed on one or more of the wall representing panels.

6. A display device comprising at least two panels formed of sheet material, one being a floor-representing panel and the other a wallrepresenting panel, one or more samples of furniture-covering material disposed at spaced apart positions on the floor panel, a mask for concealing portions of said samples and having furniture-shaped openings displaying correspondingly shaped portions of said samples therethrough, said mask simulating carpet material, panels representing articles of wood furniture in plan view disposed at spaced apart positions on said mask, a sample of wall covering disposed on the wall panel and one or more panels representing articles of wood furniture in elevation disposed at spaced apart points on said wall covering.

'7. A display device comprising components formed of sheet material and having at least two panels, one of said panels being a floor-repre- Qf-materiaI disposed on V the wall;

to simulate window casing trim disposed around.

said window opening. r

8; A display device adapted for representing the appearance of articles of furniture in a room and comprising, in combination, a component formed of flat sheet material, one or more samples of textile material adapted for covering furniture disposed at spaced apart positions on I but unattached to said component and a mask colored to simulate floor covering material or actually of floor covering material disposed over said samples, said mask being provided with an opening over each sample which is smaller than the sample and which has the shape of an article of furniture.

9. A display device adapted for representing the appearance of a wall of a room comprising, in combination, a panel formed of thin sheet material, a sample of wall covering material disposed on said panel and having at least one window opening therein, a sample of window draping material disposed behind said window opening and extending beyond the margin of the window opening and a narrow border formed of thin sheet material colored to simulate window-- casing trim disposed above the wall covering material around the margin of the window opening.

10. A display device comprising, in combination, a floor panel representing the floor of a room on a reduced scale, one or more movable markers representing one or more light sources disposed on said floor panel and a-panel formed of transparent sheet material for indicating the intensity of the light from the light source rep-- resented by a movable marker, said transparent, panel being inscribed with a reference point adapted to be disposed above a marker and also with a series of luminous intensity indications arranged around the reference point, said indications being disposed in the manner to correspond to the above-mentioned reduced scale.

11. A display device as set forth in claim 10 in which the luminous intensity indications comprise a plurality of circles having the inscribed reference point as a common center.

12. A display device as set forth in claim 10 in which the reference point is inscribed on the panel near one edge thereof and the luminous intensity indications comprise a series of semiset forth in claim ll) in. 

